ATTITUDES OF CITIZEN OF DUBROVNIK TOWARDS THE IMPACT OF CRUISE TOURISM ON DUBROVNIK

Transcription

1 ATTITUDES OF CITIZEN OF DUBROVNIK TOWARDS THE IMPACT OF CRUISE TOURISM ON DUBROVNIK Doris Peručić Barbara Puh UDC :797.1](497.13Dubrovnik) Preliminary communication Received 8 December 2011 Revised 22 February September 2012 Abstract The purpose to analyse the attitudes of the local population and population from the surrounding area on cruise tourism and its further development in the Dubrovnik area. Design in the first part the paper gives an overview of the features of cruise tourism in the world, followed by the development of cruise tourism in the Mediterranean. Further, the paper analyses Dubrovnik as a cruise destination and the social impact of cruise tourism on the destination. The results of an empirical research are presented in the last chapter as well as therecommendations for further research. Methodology A questionnaire was used as the research instrument, and the research was carried out in Dubrovnik and the suburbia in the period May June 2011 on the purposive sample of 350 respondents. Approach Cruise tourism, due to its positive effect on the local economy, has become a crucial factor in development strategies of the city of Dubrovnik. Due to the strong development of cruise tourism in Dubrovnik, a continuous market research and analysis is necessary in order to find better solutions of the existing and upcoming problems of this most dynamic sector of the leisure industry. Findings Research results indicate that majority of the citizens are aware of the positive effects from cruise tourism as well as the fact that the traffic jams, created by a large number of cruisers calling the port in the same day, are the main problem the local community is currently facing. It has been ascertained that there is a difference in attitudes between the citizens on the influence of cruise tourism on the quality of life according to where they live and employment in tourism. Originality of the research Further development of cruise tourism will depend exclusively on the dynamics of solving the existing issues, organisation of demand management and destination product. Keywords Cruise tourism, Citizens of Dubrovnik, Attitudes, the Impact of cruise tourism INTRODUCTION Global cruise market is very dynamic and it is characterised by constant changes in offer and demand. Extraordinary growth of demand for cruises that is registered in the last years in all generative markets confirms that the demand for cruise market is still growing. Mediterranean is the second cruise region in the world and leading region in EuropeThe growth of demand and the growing capacity of the Mediterranean fleet are already causing problems of accommodating passengers and ships in crucial Mediterranean ports, and problems will only get bigger unless that growth is followed by the development of port infrastructure and all the supporting tourist facilities. The city of Dubrovnik is faced with the problem of a large concentration of cruise ships and 213

2 passengers in a short interval of time and the problem of inadequate organisation of passenger and ships reception at the destination. Increasing number of mega ships, huge concentration of cruise ships in the harbour and limited possibilities for reception of big ships are starting to raise a question if positive or negative effects of cruise tourism are prevailing in impacting the leisure tourism, economy and life of local population as well as environment of the tourist destination.most research project consider the economic and environmental impact while less attention is paid to the social impact that cruise tourism has on tourist destinations. There was only one research project in the Republic of Croatia that analysed local attitudes on cruise tourism and its future development that was carried out by the Institute for Tourism in Zagreb in 2006 as part of the ''Study on Sustainable Tourism Development in Croatia''. 1. THE FEATURES OF CRUISE TOURISM IN THE WORLD Cruise tourism has become a mass phenomenon and increasingly more passengers worldwide are choosing this form of vacation. In comparison with international tourism, the world cruise industry is showing pronounced dynamic growth. In the early 80s, cruising noted slightly less than two million passengers (WTO 2003, 19). The number of passengers tourists on cruises from increased by 385% or 8.7% on average annually. The trend of growing demand continued, and in 2010, there were 18.8 million cruise passengers. Table 1: International demand for cruises (mil. passengers) North America Europe Rest of the world Total Source: Contribution of cruise tourism to the economies of Europe (2010), prepared by G.P. Wild (International) Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors, p. 4.; Contribution of cruise tourism to the economies of Europe (2011), prepared by G.P. Wild (International) Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors, p. 8. According to the Table 1 the biggest generating market is North American market with 59% share and the second most important generating market is Europe with 29% share in The leading cruise region is the Caribbean, followed by the Mediterranean. Cruise companies are constantly searching for new destinations and successfully encourage the increase in demand. The reasons of the high average annual passenger growth rate are (Peručić 2010, 71): Cruising has become a mass phenomenon The internationalization of cruise companies (three large corporations dominate the cruise market. The appearance of gigantism in the industry the main reason for building increasingly larger ships is the economy of scale and the increase in demand for cruise vacations 214

3 The transformation of large cruise ship in a uniquely deterritorialized destination in a number of senses (deterritorialization of tourist destinations, capital and labour force) High value for money Successful implementation of marketing strategies. More than half of the world active fleet are megaships larger than gt with more than passengers (Institute of Shipping Economics and Logistics 2010, 10). Two biggest ships on the world are Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas (company Royal Caribbean International) whose capacity is 5400 lower berths and gross tonnages. 2. DEVELOPMENT OF CRUISE TOURISM INTHE MEDITERRANEAN The cruise tourism in the Mediterranean stared it rapid growth in the 1990s. In the period the demand for cruise trips in the Mediterranean increased significantly, from 3.6 million pax/nights to million pax/nights (G.P. Wild International Limited (GPW) and Bermello, Ajamil & Partners, Inc. 2002, 33; G.P. Wild International Limited and Business Research & EconomicAdvisors 2011, 8). Last few years have shown an increase in demand for Mediterranean cruises from all the world markets, especially European. The European market increase in demand for cruising is closely connected to the development of the Mediterranean as a cruise region because travelers mostly decide to cruise in the areas closer to their place of residence. One of the main shortcomings of Mediterranean as a cruise region is seasonality. Cruising season is from March/April to October/November. Some European companies leave their ships in Mediterranean throughout the year and promote the concept of a whole year cruising in the region. One of the indicators of the cruise industry development in Mediterranean is a continued growth in number and capacity of the ships. Capacity calculated by number of lower berths in 2010 in comparison with 2001 more than doubled from to 190,114 lower berths (Informa Publishing Group 2002, 21; G.P. Wild International Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors 2011, 8). Cruise tourism brings many benefits to home ports, ports of call and coastal regions. Positive impacts of cruise industry on visited ports are: significant economic impact in port regions, cities and countries, positive promotion of ports/cities, significant number of jobs generated by the cruise industry, cruising is an important vehicle for sampling destination areas to which passengers may return on a land-based vacation. Negative impact of cruise industry on visited ports are:overcrowded ports and tourist attractions that can have negative influences on land based tourism and the quality of life of the local inhabitants, environmental impact on port regions and on a more general basis on Europe as a whole, growth has led to capacity issues in ports, surrounding port regions, and tourist attractions 215

4 Table 2: Leading Mediterranean Cruise Ports in 2010 (Thousands of Passengers) Port Country Port Call Total Barcelona Spain 1,085 2,348 Civitavecchia Italy 1,200 1,920 Venice Italy 305 1,617 Palma de Mallorca Spain 778 1,347 Piraeus Greece 700 1,210 Naples Italy 1,068 1,118 Dubrovnik Croatia Tunis Tunisia Livorno Italy Santorini Greece Source: Contribution of cruise tourism to the economies of Europe, prepared by G.P. Wild (International) Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors, February 2011, p. 9. Barcelona is the leading port in the Mediterranean. Second place is held by Civitavecchia, followed by Venice. The five leading Mediterranean ports are also the major home ports. Dubrovnik, as mostly port of call is in the 7 th place. Only Naples, a port of call as well, recorded higher traffic in Thanks to its strong tourist potential of cultural historical resources, natural resources, and geographic most advantageous station between Venice and Greece, Dubrovnik has become an inevitable destination in the itineraries of cruise ships in the eastern Mediterranean. 3. DUBROVNIK AS A CRUISE DESTINATION Dubrovnik is the leading Croatian cruise destination with 80% of traffic in Croatian part of Adriatic. Taking the advantage of its extraordinary tourist potential with the cultural, historic and natural resources as well as geographical; being the most convenient station between Venice and Greek ports; Dubrovnik became a must see destination in the itineraries of cruise ships in Mediterranean. Dubrovnik, as a cruise destination, is mainly developed as a transit destination (port of call) and it is rarely the home port in itineraries. Dubrovnik is among top 10 ports with the highest traffic in Mediterranean (Table 2). Dubrovnik as a cruise destination is marked by the mega cruisers traffic in the contemporary segment (42,5%), short stay of ships in the port and the fact that it is the main Croatian port for most of the itineraries. The main characteristics of cruises on mega ships are large number of passengers (more than 2000), short stay at the destination, extremely abundant offer of facilities on the ship and the duration of cruise most often three, four or seven days (Ban et al. 2011, 31). The analysis of the cruise passenger traffic dynamics by months shows that as much as 85% of the traffic takes place from May to October and the peak of season is July, August and September (Ban et al. 2011, 37). Speaking of positive impact of cruise industry on visited ports it needs to be noted that cruising is a very important factor for economic prosperity of Dubrovnik. Furthermore, it brings positive promotion of the city in the whole world. Primarily, positive word of 216

5 mouth and the fact that companies that include Dubrovnik in their itineraries promote Dubrovnik in their promotional materials, which is a form of free promotion. There is also a possibility that part of the passengers that visited Dubrovnik during the cruise return on a land-based vacation. The most prominent negative impact of cruise industry in Dubrovnik are overcrowded tourist attractions that have negative influence on land based tourism and the quality of life of the local inhabitants. Considering the expected growth of number of ships and passengers in Mediterranean, better organisation of reception and transport/traffic of passengers is inevitable, as well as more balanced schedule of ship moorings over the year, in a month, week and days of the week as well as an offer of larger number of trips to Dubrovnik surroundings. 4. THE SOCIAL IMPACT OF CRUISE TOURISM IN DUBROVNIK The arrival of a large number of passengers and mega ships can have a dramatic impact on a visited port, both on a place and its population. The impact of cruising may be considered in terms of its social, technological, economic, environmental and political effects (Cartwright and Baird 1999, 157). For the requirements of empirical research, emphasises will be made on the social impact of the consequences that cruising has on local population at the destination where cruise tourism is developed Previous Research As previously mentioned most research projects regardingthe development of cruise tourismin Europe consider the economic and environmental impact while less attention is paid to the social impact that cruise tourism has on tourist destinations. Researches considering the economic, organisational and environmental impact of cruise tourism in Europe and Croatia are the following: Contribution of Cruise Tourism to the Economies of Europe annual report commissioned by the European Cruise Council (European Cruise Council, 2012) Tourist facilities in ports, Enhancing sustainable growth of cruise tourism in Europe (Policy Research Corporation, 2009). Cruise Tourism Current Situation and Trends (WTO, 2010). TOMAS cruising Cruise passenger attitudes and expenditure (Institute for Tourism, 2006). Study on Sustainable Tourism Development in Croatia (Horak et al., 2007). Integrated cruise tourism management in Dubrovnik (Ban et al., 2011). Direct pollution cost assessment of cruising tourism in Croatian Adriatic (Carić, 2010). There was only one research project in the Republic of Croatia that analysed local attitudes on cruise tourism and its future development. The research was carried out by the Institute for Tourism in Zagreb in 2006 as part of the ''Study on Sustainable 217

6 Tourism Development in Croatia'', case study of Dubrovnik. As the basis for creating the sample the telephone book of Dubrovnik-Neretva County was used and households were chosen randomly. Telephone poll included 300 respondents (Horak et al. 2007, 9). Besides the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents, the research was based on the social and economic influence of cruise tourism on the local community. The social influence was obtained from the attitudes of local inhabitants on the influence of cruisers and their passengers on the attractiveness of living in Dubrovnik. The economic influence was measured according to the presumed economic benefits to the respondents from cruise tourism. The research results indicated following (Horak et al. 2007, 9): Tourism is recognised as the main branch of economy in Dubrovnik (96% of respondents). The citizens would like to see a larger number of passengers from cruisers when the main summer season is over (93% of respondents). The citizens enjoy the view of anchored cruisers in ports (86%). The citizens like the fact the cruisers call Dubrovnik (80%). The citizens do not perceive the cruisers as a threat to reputation of the city of Dubrovnik (73%). The citizens consider the further increase of the number of tourists will threaten the quality of living in Dubrovnik (35%). Out of the total number of respondents who consider the large crowds of tourists in Dubrovnik to be a problem (77%), over half of them claim they personally suffer the consequences. Over half of the inhabitants of Dubrovnik believe the visitors from cruisers are not good consumers (64%). Cruise tourism brings important economic benefits to the city of Dubrovnik (54%). The research did not show any major variations in attitudes on cruise tourism with respect to the period of living in Dubrovnik, while the inhabitants living in the tourism activity zone are to a smaller extent prone to deny the statement that the cruisers bring more damage than benefits to Dubrovnik, and they less enjoy the view of cruisers anchored in Dubrovnik ports (Horak et. al. 2007, 69) Research Methodology This research aimed to analyse the attitudes of the local population and population from the surrounding area on cruise tourism and its further development in the Dubrovnik area. A questionnaire was used as the research instrument, and the research was carried out in Dubrovnik and the suburbia in the period May June 2011 on the purposive sample of 350 respondents. The questionnaire included not only socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents but also questions regarding attitudes of citizens on cruise tourism, the degree to which they participate in tourist activities, as well as questions regarding their personal economic benefits from cruise tourism, forecasts for the cruising season and their perception of the jam caused by tourism activities. Five- 218

7 point Likert scale was used for measurement of the degree to which the respondents agree with a statement (1 = Strongly disagree, 5 = Strongly agree). To avoid automatic responses some statements were formed in the affirmative and some in the negative form. For collection and analysis of data following methods were used: inductive, deductive, descriptive, analytical, synthesis, comparative and statistical methods. To obtain the research results the statistical package SPSS was used. Since the purposive sample was used in the research, the results obtained cannot be used for making definite conclusions on the basic item but can only be considered as indicative. Following hypotheses were set up: H1: There are differences in attitudes of citizens of Dubrovnik on the impact of cruise tourism on the quality of living in the local community according to where they live. H2: Employees in tourism are more prone to positive attitudes on the impact of cruise tourism on the quality of living in the local community as opposed to those not employed in tourism. H3: Traffic jams are the main problem from cruise tourism in Dubrovnik Results from research on local attitudes in Dubrovnik The research included 350 inhabitants of the city of Dubrovnik and the suburbia, out of which 42% male and 58% female population. The largest number of respondents is in the age group (38.2%), similar percentage was included for the age group (19%) and (19.5%), and the age group included 17% of respondents. The smallest group of respondents was the age group (5.2%), and 1.1% in the age group 70 and over. 38.6% of employees are in private sector, 22% in the public sector, 15.7% are students, 10.9% are retired, housewives and unemployed are represented by 2.6% and 0.9% are farmers. Half of the respondents have completed secondary education; less than half have higher education (30.6% university graduates, 13.4% college graduates and 3.7% have masters or doctoral degrees). Income of approximately 42.9% of respondents is in the range HRK , 15.7% have no income, while some 15.4% have income between HRK 6001 and HRK 9000 and 10.9% of respondents have income up to HRK Only 3.1% of respondents have income HRK 9001 and more and 12% did not state their income.44% of respondents live within the town limits outside the Old City, 21.7% live in the suburban places: Mokošica, Komolac, Rožat and Primorje (Dubrovnik Littoral), 19.1% live in Župa dubrovačka, Cavtat and Konavle, and 14.6% of respondents declared to be living in the Old City. As far as employment is concerned, 37.4% are employed in tourism and 22.4% are employed in the sector directly connected with cruise tourism. Personal material benefits from cruise tourism have been confirmed by less than one third of respondents 29,8%. 219

8 Table 3: Attitudes of the Dubrovnik population on cruisers and cruise tourism Statement 1. Cruise tourism has negative influence on the quality of living of local population 2. Cruise tourism has negative influence on stationary tourism 3. Cruise tourism has negative impact onto environment 4. Cruisers are a threat to the reputation of Dubrovnik as a quality holiday destination 5. Large crowds of tourists in the Old City may have a negative impact on the historical monuments due to excessive and uncontrolled exploitation 6. Economic benefits from cruise tourism in Dubrovnik are significant 7. International cruise tourism has a positive impact on promotion of Dubrovnik as tourist destination 8. The fact that Dubrovnik is recognised worldwide as one of the leading ports of call in the Mediterranean has a positive impact on promotion of Dubrovnik as tourist destination 9. Negative effects are larger than positive effects from cruise tourism in Dubrovnik 10. The major problem for me are the crowds formed due to a large number of cruisers calling the port at the same day 11. Activities in destination for tourist from cruisers should be better organised and there should be more excursions to reduce traffic jams and crowds in the Old City 12. Traffic jams caused by a large number of cruisers calling the port in the same day must not be tolerated 13. No action is being done to reduce traffic jams caused by a large number of cruisers calling the port in the same day 14. The number of cruisers calling the port in one day during summer season should be reduced Average value Agreement with statement in %* Total (%)

9 Statement 15. Further increase in the number of cruisers will represent an additional threat to quality of living of the local population 16. Further increase in the number of tourists from cruisers is welcome if adequately managed by local authorities 17. Tourists from cruisers are not good consumers 18. I wish there were more tourists from cruisers during summer season 19. Tourists from cruisers are welcome both during pre- and postseason 20. It would be nice if cruisers called during winter 21. Large ships spoil the beauty of the city 22. I like to see mega cruisers anchored near the Old City 23. I am proud Dubrovnik is one of the most frequently called ports in the Mediterranean 24. Present tourism supply in Dubrovnik meets the demands of tourists from cruisers 25. Abolishment of visa requirements will bring a larger number of tourists from cruisers to Dubrovnik 26. Cruisers bring only problems to this city 27. The city is desert without tourists from cruisers Average value Agreement with statement in %* Total (%) Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. Table 3 indicates that 88% of respondents agree with the statement that activities in destination for tourists from cruisers should be better organised and there should be more excursions offered in order to reduce traffic jams and the large crowds in the Old City. Furthermore, a large number of respondents, some 86.8% think it would be nice if the cruise ships called during winter as well. Over 4/5 of respondents think that listing of Dubrovnik as one of the leading ports of call in the Mediterranean, as well as the international cruise tourism, has a positive impact on promotion of the city as tourist destination. The same number of respondents supports further growth in the number of tourists from cruisers if adequately managed by local authorities. At the same time over 75% of respondents consider the tourists from cruisers are welcome both in pre- and post-season. 221

10 On the other side, only 10% of respondents agree with the statement that cruisers bring only problems to the city, and only 13.1% consider the present tourism supply of the city does not satisfy the demands of tourists from cruisers. Less than one fifth of respondents believe that large ships spoil the beauty of the city, and slightly over one fifth of respondents believe that cruise tourism has a negative impact on the quality of living, also that there are more negative effects than the positive ones for the city from cruise tourism. One third of respondents believe the cruisers spoil the reputation of Dubrovnik as a quality holiday destination, and less than one third consider this type of tourism to have a negative impact on stationary tourism. Although over 4/5 of respondents support the further increase in the number of tourists from cruisers if adequately managed by local authorities, only one third would like to see them during summer season. The research has also indicated that one fourth of respondents have no particular opinion on the negative impact of cruise tourism onto the environment, although more than half of them agrees with the said statement. With respect to economic benefits for Dubrovnik from cruise tourism, two thirds of respondents agree the benefits are considerable, but slightly less than one fifth of respondents have no particular opinion. Also, almost one third of respondents do not have an opinion on the statement that tourists from cruisers are not good consumers, and 48.6% agree with this statement. Traffic jams, caused by a large number of cruisers calling the port in one day during summer season, are a significant disturbance to 68% of respondents, who also consider them intolerable. The same number of respondents agrees with the statement that no action is being done to reduce the traffic jams while 2/3 think the number of cruisers calling Dubrovnik in one day during summer season should be limited. Figure 1: Main factors causing traffic jams 2% 53% 23% 21% Inadequate road infrastructure Bad organisation Local population being nervous All stated factors Some other causes 1% Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. 222

11 Inadequate road infrastructure is the cause of traffic jams according to 23% of respondents, 21% of respondents think bad organisation is the cause, while 1% think the local population is being nervous. The largest number of respondents 53% thinks all of the stated factors are to blame, and 2% state some other causes: combinations of previous responses. To obtain the opinion of local population on cruise tourism and its development in the Dubrovnik area, the respondents were asked to reply whether in their opinion Dubrovnik should focus on high-quality tourism and neglect the cruise tourism. The results are shown in the figure below: Figure 2: Orientation to high-quality tourism 64% 12% 15% 9% Yes No I don't know Parallel development of high quality and cruise tourism is possible Source: Ibid, Figure 1. The largest number of respondents 64% consider that parallel development of highdestination, quality tourism and cruise tourism is possible with good organisation at 12% would focus on development of high-quality tourism, and 15% on development of cruise tourism. Table 4: Result of Kruskal-Wallis test for the first statement from Table 3 according to the area of living Test Statistics a,b Chi-Square df Asymp. Sig. Negative impact from cruise tourism onto quality of living of the local population a. Kruskal-Wallis Test b. Grouping Variable: area of living 8,536 3,036 Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. 223

12 Table 5: Degree of agreement with the first statement from Table 3 according to the area of living (in %) Negative impact from cruise tourism onto quality of living of the local population Old City Area of living Outside the Old City but within town limits Mokošica, Komolac, Rožat, Primorje Župa, Konavle, Cavtat Total "strongly disagree" , "disagree" " neither agree nor disagree" " agree" " strongly agree" Total Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. The Kruskal-Wallis test for the first statement from Table 3 indicates that there is a statistically significant difference in attitudes of respondents according to where they live, the significance being less than α=0,05. From Table 5 it is obvious that mostly the respondents living in the Old City agree with the stated statement on negative impact from cruise tourism onto quality of living of the local population, some 38.28%, the respondents who do not live in the Old City but live within town limits agree 18.82%, the smallest percentage of agreement is obtained from the respondents living in the suburbia: Župa, Konavle and Cavtat 14.92%. It should be mentioned here that more than one fourth of population in each area do not have a firm opinion on this statement. Table 6: Results of Mann-Whitney test for statements 1, 15 and 17 from Table 3 according to employment in tourism Negative impact from cruise tourism onto quality of living of the local population Test Statistics a Further increase in the number of cruisers will represent an additional threat to quality of living of the local population Not good consumers Mann- Whitney U 11905, , ,000 Wilcoxon W 20551, , ,000 Z -2,359-2,357-3,081 Asymp. Sig.,018,018,002 (2-tailed) a. Grouping Variable: employment in tourism Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. 224

13 Table 7: Degree of agreement with the first statement from Table 3 according to employment in tourism (in %) Employment in tourism Yes No Total "strongly disagree" Negative impact from "disagree" cruise tourism onto " neither agree nor quality of living of the disagree" local population " agree" " strongly agree" Total Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. Mann-Whitney test indicates that there is a statistically significant difference in attitudes of respondents to the said statements with respect to employment in tourism, the significance being less than α=0,05. Table 7 indicates that respondents that are not employed in tourism are more prone to agree with the statement on negative influence of cruise tourism onto quality of living of the local population (24.41%) when compared with respondents employed in tourism (16.03%). Consequently, 55.72% of respondents employed in tourism disagree with the statement versus 45.53% of those not employed in tourism. Table 8: Degree of agreement with the Statement 15 from Table 3 according to employment in tourism (in %) Further increase in the number of cruisers will represent an additional threat to quality of living of the local population Employed in tourism Yes No Total "strongly disagree" "disagree" " neither agree nor disagree" " agree" " strongly agree" Total Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. Table 8 indicates that as many as 41.46% of respondents that are not employed in tourism agree with the statement that further increase in the number of cruisers will represent an additional threat to quality of living of the local population, while their agreement expressed 30.53% of those employed in tourism % of respondents employed in tourism disagree with this statement and 33.63% of those who are not employed. It is interesting to note that as many as one third of employed in tourism do not have a firm opinion on this statement. 225

14 Table 9: Degree of agreement with Statement 17 from Table 3 according to employment in tourism (in %) Employed in tourism Yes No Total "strongly disagree" "disagree" Not good " neither agree nor consumers disagree" " agree" " strongly agree" Total Source: Elaborated and calculated on the basis of data collected from questionnaires. Table 9 shows that 57.13% of respondents that are not employed in tourism agree with the statement that tourists from cruisers are not good consumers. The same opinion has shown 34.34% of those employed in tourism. Almost 39% of respondents employed in tourism do not have a firm opinion on this statement versus 22% of those that are not employed in tourism. Disagreement with the statement was obtained from 26.71% of those employed in tourism and 20.73% of those not employed in tourism. CONCLUSION The results of the research indicate that most of the citizens of Dubrovnik are aware of the positive impacts of the cruise tourism. One of the most prominent positive impacts is the promotion of Dubrovnik as a tourist destination and significant income that Dubrovnik is making from cruise tourism. They consider traffic jams, caused by simultaneous mooring of several cruisers, as the biggest problem in the town of Dubrovnik. Most agree that the sojourn of cruise passengers should be better organized at the destination and that further growth of cruiser passengers numbers is welcome if handled properly. The research confirmed the given hypotheses. The attitudes of Dubrovnik s citizens towards the impact of cruise tourism on local inhabitants quality of life depend on their place of residence (H1). Almost 40% of inhabitants of Old town have stated that cruise tourism has negative impact on local inhabitants quality of life, while 19% of the respondents living outside Old town and just 15% of respondents living outside Dubrovnik agree with that statement. More positive attitudes towards the cruise tourism are given by employees in tourism business, more than half (56%) stated that cruise tourism has no negative impact on local inhabitants quality of life (H2). For more than 2/3 of respondents (69%) traffic jams that occur as a consequence of simultaneous mooring of several cruise ships are inexcusable (H3). The traffic congestion problems are present because of infrastructural limitations but also because of inadequate destination management. Most of the respondents (89%) see the solution in better organisation of cruise passengers stay at the destination and better offer of excursions that would decrease the pressure on Old town as the main tourist attraction. The opinion is (64% of respondents) that the development of high quality cruise 226

15 tourism is possible with good organisation of ships and passengers traffic at the destination. The main limitations of the conducted research are convenience sample, unbalanced sampling structure and small number of sample units. Considering the stated limitations the results can be considered indicative. They are the basis for further research on impact of cruise tourism on a destination. Research is necessary because cruise tourism, with its positive impacts on local economy became an important factor in the strategy of development of city of Dubrovnik. The development of cruise tourism will directly depend on dynamics of solving the existing problems, as well as organisation of managing demand and destination product. Continuous research of the development of cruise tourism in Dubrovnik will contribute to better management of cruise tourism and to its sustainable development. Cruise tourism in the Mediterranean is showing high and steady rates of growth so it s necessary to better understand and manage the changes according to the trend on the market. REFERENCES Ban et al. (2011), Integrated cruise tourism management in Dubrovnik, Department of Economics and business economics, University of Dubrovnik, Dubrovnik. Carić H. (2010), "Direct pollution cost assessment of cruising tourism in Croatian Adriatic" Financial Theory and Practice, Vol. 34, No. 2, pp Cartwright, R. and Baird, C. (1999), The Development and Growth of the Cruise Industry, Butterworth- Heinemann, Oxford. European Cruise Council (2012), [ ] G.P. Wild (International) Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors (2010), Contribution of cruise tourism to the economies of Europe, G.P. Wild, West Sussex, UK. G.P. Wild (International) Limited and Business Research & Economic Advisors (2011), Contribution of Cruise Tourism to the Economies of Europe, G.P. Wild, West Sussex, UK. G.P. Wild (International) Limited (GPW) and Bermello, Ajamil & Partners, Inc. (2002), Methodology for MedCruise Port Evaluation & Mediterranean Market Report, G.P. Wild, West Sussex, UK. Horak et al. (2007), Study on Sustainable Tourism Development in Croatia, Institute for Tourism, Zagreb. Informa Publishing Group (2002), Lloyd s Cruise International,Issue 57, Informa Publishing Group, London. Institute for Tourism (2006), TOMAS cruising 2006 Cruise passenger attitudes and expenditure, Institute for Tourism, Zagreb. International Maritime Organization (2012), [ ] Peručić, D. (2010), "The importance of cooperative marketing in the development of sustainable cruise tourism in the Mediterranean" in Šimić, L. (Ed.), Sustainable development of tourism and agrotourism, Faculty of Economics in Osijek, Osijek, pp Policy Research Corporation (2009), Tourist facilities in ports, Enhancing sustainable growth of cruise tourism in Europe, Policy Research Corporation, Antwerpen. WTO (2003), Worldwide Cruise Ship Activity, WTO, Madrid. WTO (2010), Cruise Tourism Current Situation and Trends, WTO, Madrid. 227

16 Doris Peručić, PhD, Assistant Professor University of Dubrovnik Department of Economics and Business Economics Lapadska obala 7, , Dubrovnik, Croatia Tel: (0) Fax: (0) doris.perucic@unidu.hr Barbara Puh, BSc University of Dubrovnik Department of Economics and Business Economics Lapadska obala 7, , Dubrovnik, Croatia Tel: (0) Fax: (0) barbara.puh@unidu.hr 228